Category: News

The Department of Water and Sanitation (DWS) has welcomed a ruling by the Special Tribunal, which ordered the System Applications Products (SAP) (Pty) Ltd to pay the department an amount of R81.5 million within five court days from Thursday.

The settlement arises out of the applicants (Special Investigating Unit and Water and Sanitation Minister) having reached a full and final settlement of the remainder of the disputes and matters between them, relating to the license agreements entered into between 2015 and 2016.

In 2015 and 2016, the Department of Water and Sanitation paid SAP an amount of R413 121 283.40, but the Tribunal has ruled that the two agreements did not comply with the provisions of the Constitution, the Public Finance Management Act, Treasury Regulations or the Department’s Supply Chain Management policies.

In March this year, The Tribunal ordered SAP to repay DWS more than R400 million after it set aside and declared the two software license and support agreement contracts worth more than R1billion between the department and SAP invalid.

In a statement on Thursday, the department said the parties have since agreed before the Tribunal that SAP will pay R263 million and the remainder of the amount that was in dispute would be determined by The Tribunal.

“SAP has since agreed to pay the full outstanding amount (R81.5 million) within five court days. Consequently, the agreement will extinguish the dispute between the parties and the matter will be finalised,” the department said.

The Special Tribunal has granted an order allowing the Special Investigating Unit (SIU) to freeze the pension fund of former Eskom middle manager for Program Complex Projects, Duduzile Moyo following allegations of contract fraud.

This after an investigation by the corruption busting unit found that Moyo allegedly indirectly received kickbacks amounting to some R24 million from an Eskom supplier.

SIU spokesperson Kaizer Kganyago said the order interdicts the Eskom Pension and Provident Fund from paying out the pension following Moyo’s resignation from the power utility this month.

“The SIU investigation into Moyo’s conduct found that Ms Moyo in her role as Eskom’s Supply Manager/Contracts Manager/Employer’s Representative contracted a business named Tamukelo…to transport raw and potable water from Kendal Power Station to Kusile Power Station. Moyo signed 23 interim payment certificates in respect of Tamukelo’s services for the period December 2011 to July 2014, totalling approximately R138 million.

“Furthermore, the SIU probe revealed that Tamukelo and its representatives paid entities linked or associated with Moyo, whilst she negotiated and managed Eskom’s contract with Tamukelo. The modus operandi employed by Moyo was to create structures of entities owned by members of her family and friends to receive these funds,” he said.

Kganyago added that there was “a clear conflict of interest” which Moyo did not declare to Eskom.

“[She] received these funds in circumstances where part of her duties and functions as middle management. Moyo was also part of a team that presented the negotiation strategy of the Tamukelo tender worth R300 million to the tender and procurement committee.

“Moyo also deceived Eskom and repeatedly made fraudulency misrepresentation, declaring that there was no conflict of interest when dealing with Tamukelo and other role players for five years when signing Eskom’s annual declaration of Conflict Interest Policy,” he said.

The SIU is expected to institute civil proceedings against Moyo following the granting of the order.

North West Premier Kaobitsa Bushy Maape has appointed a panel of experts to help the province lure investments and drive the economy to full recovery.

This will be done through the resuscitation of the Growth and Development Strategy.

“The panel will also be responsible to look at the status of the provincial State-Owned Enterprises (SOEs) and make recommendations to the provincial government on how these institutions can contribute in driving the provincial economy to full recovery.

“With the provincial unemployment rate currently sitting at around thirty-four percent (34 %) government believes SOEs can play a meaningful role in repositioning the provincial economy by partnering with various financial and commercial institutions to attract investments,” the provincial government said on Thursday.

The panel will also be expected to advise government on the feasibility of resuscitating old and abandoned projects by turning them into mega projects.

This includes exploring and devising strategies in initiating new mega projects through various infrastructural projects.

The appointment of these experts forms part of a broader strategy by government to create employment and address the scourge of poverty and income inequalities afflicting many communities across the province.

The Premier said the resuscitation of the Growth and Development Strategy is a step in the right direction to attract investments and create opportunities for locals.

“There is a glimmer of hope in what we are trying to achieve. In the past few months, I have been crisscrossing the province speaking to different stakeholders on how we can resuscitate the economy. All of them have made a commitment to work with us in achieving our intended objectives,” Maape said.

The Premier believes that through infrastructure development the provincial government will be able to respond to a number of challenges confronting the province and reposition the province as a viable destination for investments.

“Through this initiative we will be able to contribute to the province’s Gross domestic product (GDP) and this will in turn create opportunities for upcoming entrepreneurs. Critically this will put us in a better position to create jobs for our people so that they can be self-sufficient,” Maape said.

The panel of experts include professionals from various academic backgrounds as well as industries and organizations.

They will work hand in glove with senior government officials in seeing to the full implementation of the aforementioned plans.

The East London Division of the High Court has granted the National Prosecuting Authority’s Asset Forfeiture Unit an order to preserve the luxury vehicle of the Eastern Cape Department of Education’s supply chain Chief Director.

This after an investigation by the Special Investigating Unit (SIU) found that Marius Harmse allegedly indirectly received a payment of more than R300 000 from a supplier for the vehicle’s purchase.

SIU spokesperson Kaizer Kganyago said the payment was made by Sigqibo Makupula, the director of Kups Trading, after Harmse signed off on a R4 million Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) tender for the department.

“The SIU probe showed that Harmse was the beneficiary of a sum of R328 000, which was paid to Ronnies Motors, East London. This was done to conceal the benefit accrued as a deposit for the purchase of the car, which was ordered by Makupula, which purchase deal Makapula subsequently cancelled.

“The said amount, together with the sum of R305 000 was paid by Harmse, giving a total of R633 000 to Ronnies Motors as a deposit for the purchase of the motor vehicle which was ordered by Makupula. However, after the cancellation of the deal, the said motor vehicle accumulated a penalty of R60 000, which was levied by Ronnies Motors.

“Makupula was subsequently reimbursed a sum of R573 000. This is where the layering of the proceeds of crime took place. It is on this basis that Harmse knowingly acquired; used or attained possession of the property and or ought reasonably to have known that it is or forms part of the proceeds of unlawful activities of another person,” he said.

Kganyago explained that the investigation into the tender came as a result of government’s action to crack down on PPE tender corruption.

“The SIU investigation comes after President Cyril Ramaphosa signed Proclamation R.23 of 2020, which authorised the SIU to investigate all Covid-19-related contracts in all State institutions in respect of the procurement or contracting for goods, works and services, during, or in respect of the National State of Disaster, by or on behalf of State institutions.

“In line with the Special Investigating Units and Special Tribunals Act 74 of 1996, evidence pointing to criminal conduct is referred to the National Prosecuting Authority for further action,” he said.

Minister of Public Enterprises Pravin Gordhan has reiterated government and Eskom’s commitment to ensuring that the power utility surpasses the challenges it is currently facing.

Gordhan was answering questions in the National Assembly on Wednesday.

The power utility has been under severe pressure with continuous breakdowns at power stations, slow returns to service of generation units and most recently a lack of diesel for open cycle gas turbines leading to uninterrupted days of stage four to six load shedding.

“There will eventually be no more load shedding once we have more megawatts connected to the system. It’s not going to happen overnight. As we recover [from the impact of State Capture] and as we improve the performance of the plants, we will have more megawatts coming onto the system.

“To be frank with the South African public and as government has said repeatedly, we could still have load shedding for another 9 to 12 months. We want to limit it to stage two load shedding if at all possible and the Eskom management at a power station level needs to make sure that those plants are maintained properly, they run efficiently and they minimise the discomfort for citizens and for businesses as well,” Gordhan said.

The Minister warned that although Eskom is working to resolve its issues, load shedding remains a possibility in the immediate future.

“We work hard every single day with every single entity to make sure that the impact on the economy and the impact on the people is minimised to the extent possible. Load shedding…is because of the history of Eskom, the malfeasance we’ve seen in Eskom and the slow rate of recovery as well,” he said.

Responding to questions on Eskom’s proposed 32% tariff increase, Gordhan said the power utility needs to exercise cost saving methods such as reducing diesel and coal costs, in procurement processes and addressing poor contracting work.

“The middle class and the poor both will have some impact in the context where inflation is increasing, interest rates are increasing and therefore the cost of living and the cost of doing business will also be impacted in a negative way.

“The poor in South Africa have their impact mitigated by the free basic services that are provided, part of which is a subsidy on the side of electricity itself.

“We need to be frank that Eskom itself, although it says that it requires cost recoverable tariffs, needs to do more to undertake savings that result in the reduction of avoidable costs.  [The] 32% is definitely not affordable by the public and by this economy at this particular point in time,” he said.

Minister in the Presidency for Women, Youth and Persons with Disabilities, Maite Nkoana-Mashabane, has congratulated South African Civil Aviation Authority (SACAA) CEO, Poppy Khoza, on her appointment as the first female president of the elective International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) Assembly.

Established in 1944, the ICAO is a specialised agency of the United Nations (UN) responsible for safety and security of the Aviation Industry globally.

The agency must foster cooperation in the growth of the aviation industry to ensure safety and security at all times.

Nkoana-Mashabane said the appointment of Khoza is welcomed, as not many women are present in leadership roles in the aviation sector.

“This serves as another stride forward in the transformation of gender roles in leadership and the development of women in South Africa.”

“We are excited by the appointment of Khoza as the first female president of ICAO. This is a victory in a sector dominated by men and it proves that women are able to lead.

“We wish Khoza success in her role and we are confident that her set of skills will guide the international aviation sector safely into the future,” Nkoana-Mashabane said.

During her seven years at the wheel of SACAA, Khoza has received seven clean audits and awards from Auditor General SA (AGSA) and 87, 3% for Aviation safety against the world average of 65% audited by ICAO.

Ten people have been slapped with direct imprisonment or suspended sentences for defrauding the COVID-19 Temporary Employer-Employee Relief (TERS) scheme of the Unemployment Insurance Fund (UIF).

The details were revealed on Wednesday, 28 September 2022, when the UIF and Minister of Employment and Labour, Thulas Nxesi, attended a meeting of Parliament’s Portfolio Committee on Employment and Labour.

Presenting to the Committee, UIF Commissioner, Teboho Maruping, revealed that the 10 people were convicted and sentenced to direct imprisonment or suspended sentences for fraud, theft, and money laundering in relation to the COVID-19 TERS between 2021/22 and the current 2022/23 financial year.

The most prominent and recent cases included the 20 years’ direct imprisonment of bookkeeper Lindelani Gumede for R11 million COVID-19 TERS fraud. He was given a 135-year jail term in August this year.

According to reports, Gumede, who was arrested in Durban, KwaZulu-Natal, in August last year after an investigation by the Hawks, processed fraudulent TERS claims on behalf of four Gauteng bakeries, including Country Pies and LPG Clotilda.

The other convictions include the convictions of Moroko Moremi and his wife Treasure Moremi for their involvement in the R10 million fraud. This was after the couple, who are directors of Denmeng Trading, applied for COVID-19 TERS for 553 workers when they only employed 22.

The TERS fund was an effort by government to cushion the impact of the pandemic on businesses.

The Commissioner also informed Parliament that the Asset Forfeiture Unit (AFU) had recovered R133 million from various companies and individuals, with R123 million already returned to the UIF.

Meanwhile, R3.4 billion was also returned to the UIF as part of Phase 1 of the COVID-19 TERS “follow the money” project.

Minister Nxesi has praised the Department’s Risk Management officials, the Hawks, the Special Investigating Unit (SIU), and the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) for their tireless efforts in bringing the fraudsters to justice.

“We are grateful to law enforcement for their collaborative efforts in arresting and prosecuting those who helped themselves to funds meant for distressed workers during the devastating Covid-19 lockdowns when employees lost their income,” said the Minister.

“I hope that the convictions and prison sentences serve as a deterrent to others who might consider stealing from the UIF. We will continue to pursue anyone suspected of defrauding the fund,” he added.

He also welcomed the recent arrest of one official in KwaZulu-Natal.

“We cannot afford to have officials involved in defrauding our institutions. I urge all within the Department of Employment and Labour family to refrain from actions that could be construed as acts of corruption.”

According to the data, at least 30 people have been arrested for COVID-19 TERS-related offences so far.

More arrests are expected as Phase 2 of the “follow the money” project, which began in July 2022, continues.

Public Works and Infrastructure Minister, Patricia de Lille has moved to assure South Africans that government has no intention of using the Expropriation Bill to arbitrarily seize land from private owners.

She was speaking during a National Assembly debate on the bill on Wednesday evening.

The bill was passed in the house on Wednesday, 14 years after it was first introduced and is aimed at replacing the Apartheid era Expropriation Act of 1975.

“I am certain we can agree [arbitrary expropriation] is not the kind of pain and injustice that democratically elected representatives will subject South Africans to again.  It is our responsibility to correct the historic injustice of land ownership patterns in South Africa.

“It is extremely dangerous to suggest that government will arbitrarily take people’s property such as their homes. [Land] is an emotive issue. Across the country, there is still great pain being felt by people of colour who were stripped of their homes and denied the right to own property under the Apartheid regime.

“We can debate our points but what is wrong is to instil fear mongering and distort the facts in a debate about land and this is done all too often.  Many times, those against the Expropriation Bill have been people who were never subjected to laws that stripped people of their property or rights to own property,” de Lille said.

De Lille, however, emphasised that the “injustices of the past” must be corrected in democratic South Africa.

“We must remember that still, today, mainly people of colour live on the outskirts of our towns and cities, far away from economic opportunities and do not own any land, thanks to the apartheid regime’s draconian laws.

“It is our responsibility to correct this historic injustice. These are the wrongs of our past that we have been working to remedy since the advent of South Africa’s democracy in 1994,” she said.

She explained that the new bill has been drafted in order to ensure that legislation is in line with Section 25 of the Constitution.

“The 1975 Act is inconsistent with the Constitution in many respects.  The current bill proposes to bring the law in line with the Constitution.

“The Constitution provides that compensation for expropriation must be “just and equitable” having regard to all relevant circumstances.

“The bill outlines circumstances when it may be just and equitable for nil compensation to be paid. It does not prescribe that nil compensation will be paid in these circumstances. The bill provides that the amount of compensation will be determined by the courts,” she said.

The Gibela Rail Transport Consortium has warned members of the public about a scam designed to mislead the public about existing job opportunities at Gibela’s production factory in Dunnottar, in the City of Ekurhuleni, near Johannesburg.

At the centre of this scam is a mobile number and WhatsApp profile falsely purporting to be that of Gibela’s head of communications, Loyiso Jiya.

“After investigating the matter, Gibela has discovered that the cellphone number 065 655 0351, with a fake WhatsApp profile bearing Jiya’s image, is being used to defraud members of the public – especially those residing in the vicinity of the Gibela train manufacturing factory,” Gibela said on Wednesday.

Members of the public have been encouraged to disregard any correspondence emanating from this number, as it is a scam.

“As a standard recruitment procedure, Gibela advertises its vacancies on the company website (www.gibela-rail.com). Gibela’s contractors and subcontractors have their own recruitment channels that are not managed by Gibela employees,” the consortium said.

Members of the public are advised that they should know it is a scam when:

• They receive interview invitations via SMS or mobile phone call, because Gibela does not use SMSes or cellphones to invite applicants for interviews.
• They are requested to call the sender on their mobile phone because Gibela does not ask applicants to call the company, particularly on their cellphones. Gibela mostly uses email to confirm interviews and conduct other vacancy-related communications activities.
• The potential victim is required to make a payment in advance. Gibela does not request applicants to pay any money to any individual in any way in exchange for a job placement.
• An applicant is invited for an interview for a job they did not apply for.

For more information, or to report any fraudulent activity, please contact Gibela Head of Communications Loyiso Jiya at loyiso.jiya@gibela-rail.com.

The Police Department has applauded the speedy arrest of a suspect linked to the murder of magistrate Romay van Rooyen.

This comes after the 50-year-old magistrate and former State prosecutor was found dead in her home in Marina da Gama on Saturday, 10 September 2022 and her Toyota RAV4 vehicle missing.

According to a statement released on Wednesday, a multi-disciplinary operation comprising the Hawks’ Crimes against the State, National Priority Violent Crime Investigation, Digital Forensic Investigation and Priority Crime Management Centre has since resulted in the arrest of an 18-year-old man in Mitchell’s Plain on Tuesday, 27 September 2022.

According to reports, the arrested suspect is a relative of the deceased and was among the mourners at the funeral of the Vredenburg magistrate.

Police Minister Bheki Cele, together with the Provincial Commissioner of the Western Cape, Lieutenant General Thembisile Patekile, are set to attend the first court appearance of the teenage suspect on Thursday, 29 September 2022.

The accused is facing a charge of murder.